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Thanks to a passing but violent storm on Saturday, fun.’s big Lollapalooza moment was nearly ruined. The evacuation of Chicago’s Grant Park in the wake of an impending storm put their early-evening set in jeopardy.
But thanks to some creative rescheduling, fun. ended up welcoming the nearly 100,000 revelers back into the venue after it was deemed safe enough. And what better way to get damp people roused again than with hand-waving anthems like “We Are Young” and “Some Nights”?
Clearly amped up on the joy of simply playing their instruments really loud, fun. acted as the bellweather for the second half of Saturday, fending off the last of the storm clouds and welcoming in the cool breezes with their theatrical indie pop. Even the deeply melancholy tunes from their breakthrough album Some Nights—including the heart-piercing hit-in-waiting “Why Am I the One?”—sounded triumphant against the forces of nature herself.
It would have been a shame if fun. had missed out on that opportunity because of the weather — the trio was fully jazzed for all things Lollapalooza when EW caught up with them earlier in the day. They had just come from Montreal, and were fully focused on delivering a great festival show. “We understand how rare and special this is to play Lollapalooza, and we know that shows like this deserve our full attention,” Andrew Dost said.
Guitarist Jack Antonoff added, “Doing lots of festivals make us a better band. Rather than run around and see everything.” He added that both he and Dost had played Lollapaloozas in the past, though with different bands.
Once their set was complete, they were fully free to see everything. “I’m excited about Jack White tomorrow,” Dost said. “I was planning on going home because we have a couple of days off, but I might stick around because he’s such a hero. He’s the best.”
Meanwhile, frontman Nate Ruess had to go through the unfortunate decision-making process that faced every festival-goer on Saturday: which of two coheadliners — located at opposite ends of the vast Grant Park — to stick with. “I am actually going to watch the Chili Peppers tonight,” he said. “I’ve never seen them, and I think it’s going to be really exciting. But I would also love to see Frank Ocean, so I’ll have to be two places at once. It’ll be a Dr. Manhattan situation. Or Multiplicity.”
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